Smokey Salmon Salad with a light buttermilk dressing

Smokey Salmon

Another very pleasant morning spent at Suffern farmers market. This time my whole family hung out in the weather which held promise. We've had some crazy thunder storms and very damaging flash flooding in Rockland County in the last couple of days. But yesterday morning the sun was trying to come out and indeed did show it's happy face for a while at the market.

Our most interesting purchase yesterday was a bottle of Jin Ja from "Auntie El's" farm stand. This ginger mixer or cordial as we would call it in Ireland, has cayenne and lemon, mint and green tea in it. It's totally delish on it's own although super refreshing with selzer. But of course I had designs on it for a weekend cocktail. Much fun testing it with some watermelon juice last night. More on that when cocktail recipe is perfected.

Anyway, on to the point of today's blog; grilled salmon. I've been on a marinade kick this week and I read a great article in the latest Bon Appetit Magazine, breaking down the components of a marinade. It appealed to me and the way I organize information in my mind; they suggest all marinades basically the following; An acid, salt, an allium (someone from the onion family), a touch of sweetness, some heat (e.g. chile) and some herbs.

Using this formula, I came up with the following marinade for my salmon. I've been on a smokey flavor kick in the last few days; I read a recipe using smoked trout, that really appealed to me. However, in the absence of some smoked trout, I was drawn to the smoked paprika in my spice cabinet. So I used that as my heat, lemon juice for the acid, salt, garlic, a little maple syrup and chopped chives. I also added some extra virgin olive oil, which just seemed to marry the whole lot together nicely.

This, coupled with some new potatoes, and a farmers market salad with buttermilk dressing made for a delicious summer dinner. The added bonus, my girls ate the salmon too; less so the salad but they'd gobbled some guacamole already so I felt that checked the veggie box.

Smokey Salmon

Smokey salmon and a light buttermilk dressing

Ingredients

4 salmon fillets

1/3-1/2 cup lemon juice

3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

salt

pepper

1 1/2 teaspoons smoked paprika

1 fat garlic clove minced

2 tablespoons chopped chives

2 tablespoons maple syrup

Directions

1. Mix together all the ingredients and pour over the salmon
2. Cover and refrigerate for a couple of hours.
3. Bring back up to room temperate before grilling
4. Grill on medium high until cooked to your preference; approx 3 minutes a side for us.

Light Buttermilk Dressing

I've been working on a great tasting but light buttermilk salad dressing for weeks. I have set myself the goal of no store bought dressings in the house this summer. I really love this one and it's very healthy to boot. I haven't persuaded the kids to eat it yet, but am nowhere near giving up!

Ingredients

1/2 cup low fat buttermilk

1/2 cup low or non fat greek yogurt

salt and pepper

1 teaspoon dijon mustard

1 garlic clove, minced to a paste

dash of tabasco

finely chopped herbs (I use chives, basil and parsley)

Directions

1. Mix everything together and refridgerate for up to one week.

I served this with a salad of leaves and cucumbers alongside new potatoes.

Enjoy!

A Summer Appetizer

Zucchini and Ricotta Dip

　
We visited our "parallel life" friends on fathers day; they are also a Scottish/Northern Irish couple, living in the US. In fact, they are our surrogate American family; we often spend holidays together where most other US extended families are together. Our similar backgrounds are very comforting at times and Jayne and I both love our food. I've had many a good recipe and tip from her.

Anyway, they were hosting us for lunch, so I offered cookies and a dip. Quite honestly my cookies were not my best effort, but uncharacteristically I think I did a better job of the savory part of the offering.

We're in zucchini/ courgette season here. I know a lot of people get fed up of the bounty of zucchini over the summer but I never tire of them. In their simplest form they bring me right back to my summer holidays as a child on the campsites of France. They must have been cheaper and more available in France, as that's my first memory of them; cooked in butter on the portable camping stove.

So I decided zucchinis were to be featured in the dip along with the ricotta I seemed to have bought in a job lot last week. A quick search for inspiration and Martha Stewart came up with an idea. I added garlic and lemon a simple, creamy but refreshing dip resulted.

Add this one to your summer repertoire.

Zucchini and Ricotta Dip

based on a Martha Stewart recipe http://www.marthastewart.com/335071/creamy-zucchini-and-ricotta-spread

Ingredients

2 medium zucchini
1 teaspoon olive oil
3 or 4 cloves of garlic, chopped finely or minced
2 teaspoons of chopped thyme (I used lemon thyme)
3 lemons, zested
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 cup part skim ricotta cheese
Salt and pepper to taste


Directions

1. Grate the zucchini using a box grater or food processor
2. Heat the oil on medium high in a large pan and fry the zucchini and garlic
3. Add the thyme after a few minutes and cook until the zucchini is soft and just beginning to brown in parts
4. Take off the heat and cool
5. When cool, add the ricotta, lemon zest and juice and season.

Serve with pita chips or any other substantial chip. It's delicious with a Margarita too...

Enjoy!